Zack Wheeler continues to shine but Phillies' bats go limp in homestand finale originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
There was good news and bad news Thursday afternoon at Citizens Bank Park.
The good: Zack Wheeler continued to show that he’s over his second-half slump.
The bad: The Phillies’ bats did little to support Wheeler and a so-so seven-game homestand came to an end with a 2-1 loss to the Houston Astros.
Jhoan Duran gave up a tie-breaking solo homer to Cam Smith with one out in the top of the ninth to put the Astros ahead. Smith hit a down-the-middle, first-pitch splitter to left-center.
While Duran’s pitch was poorly located, it was hardly the Phillies’ biggest flaw of the day. Alec Bohm ran into an out at third base in the fifth inning. There was a mix-up in the infield covering second base on a double by Jose Altuve in the eighth. The Phils played over that one. Phillies hitters struck out nine times and had just three hits on the day. They chased 34 pitches out of the strike zone, a season-high 52 percent and the fifth-highest percentage by any team in the majors in a single game this season, according to Statcast. What’s more, that 52 percent chase rate was the highest in any Phillies game since tracking started in 2009.
Most of the chase came against Houston starter Cristian Javier, who kept the Phils off balance with four pitches – fastball, changeup, sweeper and cutter.
“We were swinging at pitches out of the zone and not letting him come to us. That was the biggest thing today,” Bryce Harper said. “I can only speak for myself, the last seven games haven’t been great. I’ve just got to be better.”
The Phils went 3-4 on the homestand, splitting a four-gamer with Atlanta and losing two of three to Houston.
The Phillies were a majors-best 21-7 in August. Their chase rate was just 29.7 percent and their 15.9 percent strikeout rate was the best in the majors. So far in September, the strikeout rate is over 22 percent. The team’s walk rate has shrunk from over 11 percent in August to under 7 percent this month.
These little things make a difference, especially with big games to play and October coming.
“I think we’ll be OK,” Harper said. “I don’t see us going backward in those situations. We’ve got to do it. If we don’t, it’s going to look exactly like it did the last couple years.”
(Harper was referring to two straight early playoff exits. Both were fueled by hitters chasing pitches out of the zone, and shaky bullpen work.)
Wheeler and Javier hooked up in a good pitchers’ duel Thursday afternoon. Javier held the Phillies to three hits and a run over six innings.
Wheeler pitched seven innings of one-run ball. He allowed five hits, walked two and struck out nine.
“Wheels was really good,” manager Don Mattingly said. “When you get that kind of start, you expect to win. We just weren’t able to get anything going all day.”
“Yeah,” Harper said. “Wheels did his job. As an offense, we weren’t able to get it going.”
Wheeler did some of his best work in the sixth and seventh innings. He struck out the side in the sixth then battled through a bases-loaded jam in the seventh.
Running on fumes, Wheeler issued a pair of two-out walks in the seventh as the Astros loaded the bases in a 1-1 game. The right-hander was at 105 pitches when Houston sent pinch-hitter Yainer Diaz to the plate. With the crowd of 37,100 on its feet, Wheeler struck out Diaz on a 2-2 sweeper to preserve the tie. It was his 110th pitch and he left the mound to a standing ovation.
Mattingly had rookie Alex McFarlane up in the bullpen, but it was Wheeler’s game.
“His stuff was still good,” Mattingly said. “I felt he had enough in the tank to get that hitter. He was the best guy for that situation.”
Wheeler admitted that he fed off the crowd in getting his final out. On the day, his fastball reached 97.2 mph and sat at 95.7 mph. He got four strikeouts on his splitter, which he rediscovered in his previous start. He got 18 swings and misses.
“Everything is doing what it’s supposed to,” he said.
Wheeler struggled in a six-start stretch from July 27 to August 21. He recorded an 8.51 ERA over that span. In three starts since then, he has allowed just three runs in 19 innings. He’s back. And that’s good news for the Phillies as the games only get bigger, starting this weekend in Atlanta.
The Phils trail the first-place Braves by four games in the NL East with 15 to play. That deficit is actually five games considering the Braves hold a tie-breaker over the Phils based on head-to-head record. The Phils pretty much need a sweep if they have designs on winning the division.
A wild-card playoff berth is more likely. The Phils lead the Chicago Cubs by one-game for the top wild-card spot.
The Phils need to win the division or the top wild-card spot to host a first-round, best-of-three playoff series. The race for the top wild-card spot could go right down to the final day.
“It’s super important,” Harper said of playing that first series at home. “We’re trying to run down the Braves and the Cubs at the same time. We want to play at home. We want to be here and play in front of our own fans, sleep in our own bed and have the opportunity to play at our park. It’s a huge advantage in the postseason, just hearing it from other players coming in here and playing in this environment. We expect our crowds to be loud and crazy and obnoxious and talk the crap that they do to other players and all that kind of stuff. So, I think it plays a huge part.”
Here are the pitching matchups for the series in Atlanta.
Friday night – Aaron Nola (6-10, 4.76) vs. lefty Chris Sale (14-9, 2.10).
Saturday night – Jesus Luzardo (14-5, 2.87) vs. right-hander Tyler Mahle (5-10, 4.05).
Sunday afternoon – Andrew Painter (3-9, 5.71) vs. right-hander Grant Holmes (9-5, 3.46).



















